Class-size amendment has unintended consequences

Friday

Dec 7, 2012 at 12:01 AM

This clearly isn't the best way to run a school. It's an unintended consequence of the effort to achieve better academic results through smaller classes.

OUR VIEW

Florida voters had the best of intentions when they approved a constitutional amendment in 2002 mandating that public schools limit class sizes. But as so often happens in the real world of public policy, good intentions have led to some unfortunate consequences for the schools — especially in Volusia County, which is facing state fines for failing to meet the rigid requirements of the class-size amendment. Volusia County school officials have been dealing with lagging tax revenues caused by the weak local economy, declining state education funding and a perverse state funding formula that generally favors wealthier counties. Now the school district faces the prospect of having to absorb the impact of a state fine of more than $2 million because it was not in full compliance with the class-size mandate. The loss of between $2 million and $3 million isn't good for the children. Yet advocates of the class-size mandate intended to help children improve their academic performance and their social skills. The inflexibility of the amendment is going to exact a toll on nearly a third of the state's school districts, including Flagler, which is expected to pay a penalty of about $127,000. Under the class-size amendment, schools must limit the number of students in core academic classes to 18 in kindergarten through third grade, 22 in fourth through eighth grades and 25 in high school. Compliance is determined class-by-class, and if just one class is over the limit by one student, the entire school district is considered out of compliance. Class sizes are measured in October. The state is supposed to provide funding for extra teachers but the formula doesn't take into account the reality of students moving in and out, causing class sizes to change, Volusia Deputy Superintendent Robert Moll told The News-Journal. Since 2003, Volusia schools have received more than $500 million for extra teachers to meet the class-size requirements. On top of that, the state sent the district $43 million for construction to create space for more classes. That's a sizeable chunk of public money, but it wasn't enough to ensure compliance with the one-size-fits-all rules. In 2010, Florida voters rejected a constitutional amendment that would have used schoolwide averages — not classroom-by-classroom counts — to determine compliance. School officials have been left to scramble to meet the requirements, hiring teachers at the last minute, juggling students' and teachers' schedules and even using multi-grade classes in elementary school. This clearly isn't the best way to run a school. It's an unintended consequence of the effort to achieve better academic results through smaller classes. Studies show some correlation between smaller classes and improved learning. But there is little evidence that achievement improves unless classes are reduced to fewer than 20 students. And the biggest benefits come in the elementary grades. An article published by GreatSchools observed that "class-size reduction, in and of itself, is not the answer to all the problems in education." A class needs, first and foremost, a high-quality teacher. The constant demand for teachers to satisfy class-size mandates may well undermine the goal of putting highly effective teachers in every classroom. Then there's the question of whether some of the money spent on compliance with class-size requirements could be better spent on academic programs or additional training for teachers. It's hard to unring a bell and it may be even harder to undo a constitutional mandate. That's one good reason why Florida would be better off with fewer constitutional amendments. The political odds don't favor a new effort to put reasonable flexibility into the class-size amendment. So state and local school leaders need to work on finding the best methods to implement the mandate — and to ensure adequate funding. Good intentions can produce bad results. The real challenge for school officials is ensuring that the class-size amendment doesn't end up hurting K-12 education in Florida.